The Lightning Queen
by GrissleMcThornbody
Summary: Years after her first encounter with Shippo, Souten is engaged to a Sea demon and well on her way to rebuilding the Thunder clan. However, a twist is thrown into her plans when the contest presented to her as a gift from her father-in-law draws a particular Fox demon.
1. Chapter 1

"Lady Souten!" a red lightning dragon bellowed, as he floated down the halls of the almost entirely vacant castle. "Where are you?"

"I'm back here," a young woman's voice called from a back room.

The pony sized dragon grumbled to himself; his Lady Souten's voice had come from the room he knew all too well as the Strategy Room. "The Betrothal Party will be showing up any minute!"

He rounded the corner to reveal his young mistress standing, almost fully armored, over a box with maps and charts. Her long black hair hung in two tight braids down past her waist. A metal chest plate bound her womanly figure, and a hakama hid her wide hips. She looked up at her long time compatriot and servant, her red eyes glistening in the candlelight.

"Kouryuu, You'll make sure to bring them right?" her voice was barely tinted with a distinct nervousness.

"Of course, Lady Souten," the dragon sighed. "However, you cannot go to your fiancée dressed like that. You must change."

The woman sighed and looked down at the paper gripped in her hand: a picture in bright crayon of a black haired girl with two tight buns, which Souten recognized as being a younger version of herself. In the bottom corner scrawled in bright orange the name of the artist, Shippo.

Souten remembered very fondly of the day that they had met and she attempted and failed to kill the young fox boy to avenge her brothers' deaths. But those days had long since passed. She had ended up a hardened warrior, fending off many attempts on her life, and, now that she was a woman fit to bear children, she was engaged and on her way to rebuilding the Thunder demon clan.

She rolled the picture up with a sigh and tossed it into the box, then turned to her dragon vassal with a calm smile. "You are correct; I must prepare."

An hour later Souten was standing outside, wrapped in a blue and red kimono with her hair loosely bound at the bottom. A straw hat and veil shielded her face from the fish like demons which made up the Bethrothal Party. Several boxes, including the one she had packed earlier, rested upon a wagon, and an ornate Palanquin stood at the ready. Kouryuu lingered close to her side.

Both parties bowed to each other.

"We have come, Lightning Princess, to deliver you unto our young lord," a red scaled fish man gargled through his large lips.

Souten lifted her head just enough to reveal her cool smile, though her nerves jumped around all over.

"Please, take me unto the Storm Lord," she said meekly.

The palanquin was a lot ricketier than she had expected. Her bottom hurt despite the silk cushions, and her shoulders felt weirdly bound in the kimono. She would have to grow more accustomed to wearing feminine clothes; this is what would be expected of her until she bore a first child.

When at last they arrived at the beach bound palace, Souten could not help but be blown away. It was large and ornately carved into the cliffs which reached out to the sea. On the steps of the great palace, stood an imposing figure of a blue humanoid demon with frilled fins jutting from his ears and forearms with a large coral wrapped spear, and next to him stood a smaller, paler version, dressed in the garb of a groom.

She exited the palanquin, and they bowed to each other.

"Welcome, Lightning Princess Souten," the smaller demon said in a smooth, gentle voice. "I am Masao, first son of Lao-ten the Storm Lord. It is a pleasure to finally meet you."

Her groom had a handsome face to match his pleasant voice. His eyes were large black orbs, and his skin faded from powder blue to the color of warm crystal clear seas. Not to mention, he seemed kind.

"My gracious, Lord Masao," Souten murmured. "Thank you for your kindness. I will do my best to serve you."

A deep chuckle came from the imposing demon. His smile was broad revealing a large pair of fangs. He clapped and walked down the stairs until he loomed over the young woman.

"Your wisdom and beauty has been spoken of far and wide," he rumbled. "You are also quite capable in combat and the arts, I hear."

She nodded keeping her eyes down. "You are gracious my lord."

There was silence. Souten glanced up to see the large demon beaming. Her face was hot. She suddenly felt very intimidated.

"I have a gift for you," he said softly. "In honor of my new daughter-in-law, I shall hold a contest! A contest that will test the skills of the greatest artists in the land!"

His eyes flickered a knowing look. "I am interested in your skill…"

She smiled. "Yes my lord."

* * *

><p>In a distant village, on a nearby mountain, a young man in a blue kimono and brown fur vest rested under an oak tree. His long rusty hair waved in the breeze. A stack of books and box of paper were tied together in a bundle by his side.<p>

Sunlight warmed the mysterious young man's face, and the sound of giggling human women filled his pointed ears. They twitched with interest suddenly.

Above him a Squirrel demon whispered to a tiny spirit…

"An art contest?" the spirit suddenly exclaimed.

"Yeah, they say the best artist will be awarded one wish that they can use for whatever they want," the demon squeaked.

"Is the Storm Lord really that powerful?" the spirit asked.

"Of course!" the squirrel proclaimed before lowering his voice. "Plus I hear he has the most beautiful demons in the land in his harems."

The young man's eyes flew open. Within a second the man was in the tree with the two creatures. His bright blue, green eyes were full of excitement.

"Where can I find this contest?" he said with a grin.

"What's it to you?" the squirrel chided. "You're just some young punk."

The young man chuckled, and dropped out of the tree. He searched his pack, pulling out a bundle of pages tied together by leather strips. Then with a quick hop he was back up in the tree. He handed the book to the squirrel.

"Feast your eyes," he whispered.

The squirrel opened the book and gawked at it. On the pages were fine lined pictures women in revealing positions. With each page flip the squirrel's eyes grew wider.

"W-where did you get this," the little demon cried.

The young man smirked, snatching the book away. "I made it," he said coolly. "Now tell me…" His feet warped until they were two fury paws, and a sandy tail sprung out from behind him. "Where can I find this contest?"


	2. Chapter 2

There was the echoing thud of the Taiko drums, shortly followed by the piercing wail of flutes. Only a few days after her arrival, Souten sat in yet another kimono by her fiancée's side, her head aching. She had never been fond of music; it was all too loud for her, despite her Thunder demon blood. She was not the largest fan of the dancers in the center of the courtyard either. Though she liked dancing and their elegant movements, she did not enjoy the fact the dancers were all so beautiful. She pouted.

The pale water demon next to her glanced at her and smiled, causing Souten to blush. She smiled back and averted her gaze.

The Storm Lord chuckled loudly next to his son, and downed another bowl of sake. Silk rustled as the dancers all twirled about. Occasionally a dancer would throw a week towards the ruling family, eliciting a smile from the bulky lord.

The song came to a close and the dancers shied away. The Storm Lord stood and addressed the crowed which had been slowly forming in the courtyard over the past couple of hours. It was a diverse group of demons clearly hailing from all regions. Souten took a deep breath.

"Friends!" the Storm Lord bellowed. "Today marks the engagement ceremony of my eldest son Masao."

The crowd cheered.

"You are probably wondering why I called you all here for such grandeur," he continued. "Some of you know, my future daughter-in-law is the beautiful Lightning Princess Souten."

Some catcalls and hollers came from the crowd, answered by the Storm Lord's glare.

"There will be none of that," he scolded. "For although she is a beauty the princess's talents stretch much deeper than that. She is a skilled tactician on the battlefield as well as incomparable artist."

Silence. The entire crowd was staring intensely up at her. Souten bowed her head from embarrassment.

"Which is why I have called you here today," the Storm Lord announced with a smile. "We shall hold a contest of arts! And if any man can beat our lovely Souten I shall grant them whatever their heart desires."

A roar erupted in the courtyard. The Storm Lord sat, and one of his fishy vassals came forward carrying a scroll.

"We shall begin the contest now!" the fish demon gargled. "Contestant please come forward."

A few minutes later Souten sat in front a large sheet of paper in line with several other demon artists. Her hard pounded wildly. She knew that she was skilled, but there was no telling what these demons had in store.

She waved to Rouryuu, and he brought over an ornate box. The other artists seemed to have come well prepared as well. The wolf spirit next to her had brushes of all sizes laid out beside him. In fact, pretty much all of the other artists had all brushes. Souten smiled; they didn't have her secret weapon.

Then she noticed the demon at the end. She couldn't see his face, but she could see his curiously small package.

"The first competition shall be interpretation," the fishy vassal read from the scroll. "Each artist shall depict their vision of the poem."

Souten bowed her head opened her ornate box and withdrew a tray of several colorful blocks of wax. They were of Souten's own design. She had formulated them after her crayons started running out. It had taken a lot of time to get the colors just right, and, even though they weren't as vibrant as she would ideally liked, they offered much greater lasting power and control.

"Spring from your glass cage

River sprites full of vengeance.

The blood moon waxes."

They were off. With one fluid motion Souten plucked the black wax from her box and set to work. People watched intently as they all worked.

Once thirty minutes had passed the drums sounded that the time was up, and the artist back away from their papers.

Souten bowed as the fish servants picked up her work. All the papers were brought to the Storm Lord, Lord Masao, and three other judges from varying clans. They all flipped through them. After a few moments they all nodded to each other. The judge which looked to be some kind of bird demon stood and addressed the crowd.

"This test was to determine the artist ability to look beyond the concrete to find the deeper meanings in life. Only those who were able to depict this deeper meaning can be seen as skilled enough artists to move on the next round," he said in a raspy voice. "Those artists are: Lady Souten, the Frog Monk, Tetsou the imp, the Masked Fox…"

He rattled of a few other names and retook his seat. Souten smiled, she suddenly had no doubt in her abilities; however, that contestant with the small box, the Masked Fox, was still in this competition. She studied his face, but it was impossible to discern his features beneath the metal masked. His teal eyes pieced into hers. She shivered. Another sheet of paper was placed in front of her, and she looked away; she could not be bothered by the likes of him if she wished to win.

Another three rounds passed each testing their intuition and skill with their instruments. Pairs of artists were eliminated at a time, until only Souten and the Masked Fox remained.

As they sat before the crowd, Souten kept a straight face as she felt the beginning twinges of pain in her fingers. They had been drawing almost nonstop for several hours. She was amazed that the crowd was somehow still interested. There was something very strange going on. It seemed that the majority of the spectators near the Masked Fox were men, who for some odd were reason were grinning like children, plus, that demon had been looking her up and down the entire time. She didn't like it.

The masked artist winked at Souten, causing her to almost completely loose her composure. Was he making fun of her? She was right to be so concerned about him; this man might just give her a run for her money.

The announcer came forth once more, and the two artists were this time present with two large white boards. The boards were then propped upright using many rocks. Souten studied her slate. Out of the corner of her eye she could see the Masked Fox rolling up his sleeves.

"For this last competition," the fish man called out to the crowd. "The artists will be judged by all of our honored guests who have gathered as well as our judges." He bowed to Souten.

"Artists."

They bowed back.

"Please grace us with the sight that you find most beautiful."

Souten was awestruck. Her mind was suddenly blank. Amid the flurry of the competition she had shut out that piece of her memory. What she thought was most beautiful? She had rarely set foot outside of palace. How could she create something beautiful enough to reach all hearts?

She was frozen. The crowd was beginning to murmur, and she could feel her future family's eyes on her. Her heart was beating furiously out of control.

No.

She shook herself from her daze. She would not lose to something so simple as speaking from her heart. She pulled back her sleeves and reached for her box. She remembered the sight she had seen when she first arrived at the beach Palace, and it all became to come to life.

The sapphire glisten from the stone shingles. Red and rose of the clouds which loomed above the tangerine sea. Then on the steps, her salvation, her lord fiancée and the Storm Lord, in booming glory. To show her affection she set them apart with lightning to reveal their strength. She wiped the sweat from her brow as the drums signaled the end.

The crowd gasped, as she backed away from the board. The fish servants quickly grabbed the boards and rushed them up to the judges. The judges' eyes first studied her piece. She could see the Storm Lord smile and stroke his chin. Then the Masked Foxes piece was set before them. Their eyes all grew wide and they intently studied the picture and whispered words to each other. All except the Storm Lord who had barely given the piece a glance. Souten smiled; it was good news for her.

The pieces were then turned around to face the entire crowd.

Souten suddenly felt all the color drain from her face. Next to her piece sat a picture of a black haired beauty in a sky blue kimono, much like her own, revealing her breasts to the world as waves and lightning crashed around her.

The bird judge who was quite red in the face came forward and coughed.

"Now if the artist will please explain their work," he rasped.

Souten began to stand, but before she could she heard the sudden burst of a young man's voice from behind her.

"I wished to capture the most beautiful woman in this land in her purest form! I was struck from the first moment I saw her," he roared. The Masked Fox was now standing, unmasked. His face was suddenly so familiar. Souten's breath caught. "And that is why for my piece of ultimate beauty I depicted the Lightning Princess Souten!"


	3. Chapter 3

"Now if the artist will please explain their work," the bird judge rasped.

"I wished to capture the most beautiful woman in this land in her purest form! I was struck from the first moment I saw her," a voice roared. The Masked Fox was now standing, unmasked. Souten's breath caught. "And that is why for my piece of ultimate beauty I depicted the Lightning Princess Souten!"

The blood drained from her face; she thought that woman had looked far too familiar. She looked back at the Fox demon, stunned by the conviction in his voice, and only found herself more stunned by the conviction in his blue, green eyes.

The Storm Lord suddenly leapt from his seat, seizing the lewd piece of artwork in one hand. As he studied the piece his face changed from deep blue to deep crimson.

"Explain this blasphemy fox!" He boomed. "How dare you depict the future daughter of this clan in such a light!"

The familiar looking young fox man bowed deeply. "Forgive me, but I could not imagine any other sight more pleasing to the eye!"

The Storm lord's face quaked with rage. "Seize him!"

Fish soldiers lunged at the man, but he easily evaded them. The fox demon smirked as he began to leap away.

Souten leapt up and reached out a hand. "Lightning!"

With a crash a gigantic bolt of lightning ripped through the sky, striking the Fox man. He fell from the sky with a cry of pain. Once he landed he was seized by the Storm Lord's servants and brought before the lord.

The massive demon loomed over him.

"My lord," the bird judge interjected. "Please have mercy on this man, it would be a tragedy to lose such a skilled artist."

"Yes father," Masao chimed in. "He is truly ahead of his time. Perhaps he did not know how he shamed our princess-"

"Silence!" the Storm Lord ordered, throwing a hand back. "Unless someone can give me a truly good reason to preserve this man, I shall destroy him."

The Fox demon, grimaced, as he shoved into the ground before the Sea demons. Souten definitely knew his face. Without a doubt, it was the fox demon she had tried to destroy years before, Shippo. He was the one who had shown her the beauty of crayons, the reason she was an artist.

"Dear father-in-law," Souten called, approaching the group. "I believe this man is what they call a prodigy." She stopped and looked down at the fox demon. "You are Shippo, correct?"

The young man's eyes suddenly flew open. He looked like a wild caged animal as he stared up at her. From the confusion in his eyes, Souten could tell that he did not recognize her, but it did not matter.

"My dear lord," she continued kneeling down before the great ruler of all Sea demons. "It pains me to say that I have this man to thank for my art. It is he who introduced me to the wax blocks called 'crayons' that I use today."

"See it is as I say," the bird judge exclaimed. "This young demon is ahead of his time." He pointed to the portrait of the woman. "Just look how fine these lines are. It is like no craftsmanship I have ever seen before."

The Storm Lord massaged his brow and let out a heavy sigh. He studied Souten's face carefully, before looking to Shippo who was still staring at Souten.

"Artist," the large lord grumbled.

"Yes my lord," Shippo replied respectfully.

"How is it that you had the gall to our Princess in the nude? You have not seen her in such a state have you?"

There was a great deal of threat in the demon's voice, but Souten was quite surprised that he was so calm. After all, he wasn't called the Storm Lord for nothing. It was said that he alone was the reason humans were not able to venture too far from the coast to go search the eastern seas. For him to be merciful was very rare.

Shippo's response was also not what Souten expected; he laughed. This was answered by the Storm Lord giving him a questioning look.

"I am a professional," the young Fox demon finally said, a smug grin plastered across his face. "I have enough experience that I can tell what a woman looks like from simply looking at how her kimono drapes over her body."

Souten's face was suddenly warm. All that time Shippo had been looking her over was him mentally undressing her.

"That's an incredible skill," her fiancée gasped, his eyes bright. Souten groaned inside; she knew her future husband had been too perfect. Little did she know he was a closet pervert.

She looked to the Storm Lord, who seemed deep in thought. Then suddenly the bulky demon burst out laughing. He waved a hand dismissingly, and the fish guards released the young fox demon. The mighty lord then stroked his beard and gave Shippo a mischievous grin.

"So…" he mused. "Do you have any material that I might analyze as proof of your profession?"

"My lord-" Souten protested.

"Of course my lord," Shippo replied, pulling a small book out of his kimono.

Souten couldn't decide which was worse: the fact that her first love had apparently become an erotic artist; or the fact that her future father-in-law was going to check out smut in front of everyone.

The Storm Lord flipped through a couple of the pages of the book carefully before handing it back to its creator.

"I have made a decision," he announced loudly the murmuring crowd. "Though I cannot condone his exposing of our princess, I declare this young man the winner of the competition!"

The crowd suddenly erupted into mixed cries of joy and outrage. Some demons spat at Shippo, while others danced wildly about.

"Silence!" The Lord cried. In an instant the people obeyed. "As his reward, I hereby invite him to stay in the palace however long he may like." He then turned to the servant by his side. "Please wrap the celebration up for today."

"Yes my lord!"

The Storm Lord then stood and turned to Shippo. "What say you, young artist?"

Shippo grinned wildly. "I gladly accept my lord."

"Excellent," the large demon beamed. "Masao, please escort your betrothed back inside. We have had enough excitement for today."

"Of course father," the young lord replied.

He quickly was at Souten's side offering an arm, but his fiancée's focus was completely on Shippo as he collected his things and rushed to the Storm Lord's side.

Souten sighed. She never thought that she would see Shippo again. Now she had, and, although he studied her well enough to pretty much see through her clothing, he did not recognize who she would. Perhaps it was because she had grown… When she thought about it, she had barely even recognized herself in his portrait of her.

"My lady," Masao whispered, snapping Souten back to her senses.

"Yes, let us go," she said, attempting to give him a reassuring smile. She then turned to her dragon friend who was looming nearby. "Kouryuu, please gather my things."

"Yes, Lady Souten," the dragon replied simply with a bow.

Kouryuu only came to her later that night after she had changed into more comfortable clothes. When he dropped off her art supplies she was sitting by a torch looking holding but not reading an atlas that she frequented whenever she felt troubled.

"My Lady," Kouryuu murmured, gliding up to her. "Are you alright?"

Souten looked up at her long time servant. Her eyes were distant.

"He is not as I remembered him," she whispered.

The dragon studied her silently. He then inched closer to her side and stuck out his neck.

"Would you like to hit me?" he asked.

She laughed reaching out her hand. She balled up her fist, but then released it and gently stroked her servants head.

"You are so kind Kouryuu," she said smiling. Tears began touching the corners of her eyes. "I think I'm just in shock."

"My lady…"

Her eyes were suddenly full of fire, and her strokes were slowly morphing into pats.

"That pervert embarrassed me in front of the entire clan," she simpered. "And I saved him…"

The dragon shrank away from his mistress.

"Think of it this way Lady Souten," he pleaded. "He owes you now."

Souten scowled at him, but quickly replaced it with a smile.

"Yes," she whispered. "And I will make him pay."


End file.
